DISA executive dubs Cyber Protection Teams as the ‘new infantry’

FORT MEADE, Md. During a capstone training course, cyber development executive to the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), John Hickey dubs the Cyber Protection Teams (CPTs) as the “new infantry.”

“I’m excited to see you guys added to the force. I’ll say you are almost like the ‘new infantry’ in my perspective because on the cyber domain — it is a domain — we’re being attacked daily and we need people who can hunt key terrain,” he says.

Hickey mentions that the Department of Defense (DoD) spends approximately $1 billion a year on cyber operations to protect the network. “The CPTs are the critical link. We can have the best tools in the world, but it still takes [people] to figure out what’s going on,” Hickey adds.

“It’s important to understand the state of the network today and really understand the behavior … so when there are changes to that behavior on key terrain, you are the gap filler for what our tools can’t see,” says Hickey. “A lot of that is going to be coming from your gut and that’s [developed] through training and exposure.”

Hickey’s remarks focused on on protecting the DOD Information Networks (DODIN). DISA’s Cyber Development Directorate - responsible for training the DoD cyber workforce – manages the coursework that allows students to participate in real-world scenarios, in a simulated non-production environment, to increase their proficiency level and demonstrate their ability to react to real-world threats.